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Mental Development Index (mental + development_index)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Medical Sciences	60%

Selected Abstracts

Developmental assessment of preterm infants at 2 years: validity of parent reports

DEVELOPMENTAL MEDICINE & CHILD NEUROLOGY, Issue 1 2008
Samantha Johnson PhD CPsychol
Parental questionnaires are inexpensive alternatives to standardized testing for outcome measurement. The Parent Report of Children's Abilities has previously been revised (PARCA-R) and validated for use with very-preterm infants at 2 years of age. This study revalidated the PARCA-R for assessing cognition in a larger and more inclusive sample of preterm infants. One hundred and sixty-four children (82 males, 82 females) of <32 weeks' gestation (median 29wks, interquartile range [IQR] 28-30wks); and median birthweight 1200g (IQR 925-1463g) were evaluated using the Mental Development Index (MDI) of the Bayley Scales of Infant Development - 2nd edition (BSID-II) at 2 years' corrected age. Parents completed the PARCA-R questionnaire. Significant correlations between PARCA-R Parent Report Composite (PRC) scores and MDI scores (r=0.77, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.69-0.82, p<0.01) demonstrated concurrent validity. A receiver operating characteristic-determined PRC cut-off of <44 had optimal discriminatory power (area under curve 0.92) for identifying MDI <70, with 85% sensitivity (95% CI 0.58-0.96), 87% specificity (95% CI 0.81-0.92), 98% negative predictive value (95% CI 0.95-1), and 37% positive predictive value (95% CI 0.22-0.54). The PARCA-R has good concurrent validity and diagnostic utility for identifying cognitive delay in very-preterm infants at 2 years of age. It is useful for outcome measurement, developmental screening, and facilitating parental involvement at folow-up. [source]

Predicting Individual Differences in Recall by Infants Born Preterm and Full Term

INFANCY, Issue 1 2006
Carol L. Cheatham
A heterogeneous sample of infants with preterm histories and infants born full term participated in a study of declarative memory and rate of encoding, as measured in an imitation task and an examining task, respectively. Here we report the comparisons of the performances of infants born very preterm (27,34 weeks gestation) and moderately preterm (35,37 weeks gestation) to infants born full term (38,41 weeks gestation) and tested at 12 months corrected age (from due date). Lower levels of recall were seen among the infants born very preterm. Rate of encoding, weeks gestation, and score on the Mental Development Index (MDI) of the Bayley Scales of Infant Development were tested as possible sources of individual differences in recall. Rate of encoding and MDI predicted delayed ordered recall. Implications for early detection of cognitive difficulties in children with preterm histories are discussed. [source]

A Cognitive Approach to the Development of Early Language

CHILD DEVELOPMENT, Issue 1 2009
Susan A. Rose
A controversial issue in the field of language development is whether language emergence and growth is dependent solely on processes specifically tied to language or could also depend on basic cognitive processes that affect all aspects of cognitive competence (domain-general processes). The present article examines this issue using a large battery of infant information-processing measures of memory, representational competence, processing speed, and attention, many of which have been shown to predict general cognition in a cohort of full-terms and preterms. Results showed that various aspects of infant memory and representational competence (a) related to language at both 12 and 36 months, (b) predicted similarly for the two groups, and (c) predicted 36-month language, independently of birth status, 12-month language, and the 12-month Bayley Mental Development Index. Additionally, the results established predictive validity for the MacArthur 12-month language measure. These findings support a domain-general view of language. [source]

Effect of Gene-environment Interactions on Mental Development in African American, Dominican, and Caucasian Mothers and Newborns

ANNALS OF HUMAN GENETICS, Issue 1 2010
Shuang Wang
Summary The health impact of environmental toxins has gained increasing recognition over the years. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) are known to affect nervous system development in children, but no studies have investigated how polymorphisms in PAH metabolic genes affect child cognitive development following PAH exposure during pregnancy. In two parallel prospective cohort studies of non-smoking African American and Dominican mothers and children in New York City and of Caucasian mothers and children in Krakow, Poland, we explored the effect of gene-PAH interaction on child mental development index (MDI). Genes known to play important roles in the metabolic activation or detoxification of PAHs were selected. Genetic variations in these genes could influence susceptibility to adverse effects of PAHs in polluted air. We explored the effects of interactions between prenatal PAH exposure and 21 polymorphisms or haplotypes in these genes on MDI at 12, 24, and 36 months among 547 newborns and 806 mothers from three different ethnic groups. Significant interaction effects between haplotypes and PAHs were observed in mothers and their newborns in all three ethnic groups after Bonferroni correction. The strongest and most consistent effect observed was between PAH and haplotype ACCGGC of the CYP1B1 gene. [source]

One-year infant outcome in women with early-onset hypertensive disorders of pregnancy

BJOG : AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF OBSTETRICS & GYNAECOLOGY, Issue 2 2008
A Rep
Objectives, To evaluate the role of plasma volume expansion on 1-year infant outcome after severe hypertensive disorders of pregnancy and to determine prognostic factors for adverse neurodevelopmental infant outcome. Design, Randomised controlled trial, observational prognostic study. Setting, Two university hospitals in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Population, One hundred and seventy-two infants alive of 216 mothers with severe hypertensive disorders of pregnancy who were randomised for a temporising management strategy with or without plasma volume expansion. Methods, At 1 year of corrected age, a neurological examination according to Bayley (mental development index [MDI] and psychomotor development index [PDI]) and Touwen was performed. Main outcome measures, Adverse neurodevelopmental infant outcome was defined as a MDI/PDI score below 70 and/or an abnormal Touwen. Risk factors for adverse neurodevelopmental outcome were explored by univariate and multivariate analyses. Results, Adverse neurodevelopmental infant outcome was observed in 31 infants (18%). There were no differences between the randomisation groups. In multivariate analysis, an association with abnormal umbilical artery/middle cerebral artery Doppler ratio higher than the median, major neonatal morbidity, higher education of the parents, multiparity and Caucasian ethnicity was observed. Conclusion, Nearly 70% of the infants were alive at 1 year without adverse neurodevelopmental outcome. Maternal plasma volume expansion during pregnancy has no effect on 1-year infant outcome. The prediction of adverse outcome at 1 year by perinatal parameters is limited. [source]